Dana Gas, Crescent complete 5-year operation in Iraq

Sharjah, October 14, 2013

Dana Gas, a leading regional private-sector natural gas company, and Crescent Petroleum, a private oil and gas company in the Middle East, have completed five years of joint production in the Kurdistan region in Iraq.

As joint operators of the Khor Mor Field on behalf of the Pearl Consortium, they are currently producing an average of 80,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day, with total investment of $1.1 billion and total cumulative production of close to 100 million boe, said a statement.

The daily production includes 335 million cu ft of gas per day and 14,100 barrels of condensate, with an LPG capacity of over 1,000 tonnes per day. A maximum production rate of 87,700 boe per day was also achieved.

The project has ensured continuous power supply for four million people in the Kurdistan Region, in contrast to the electricity crisis in other parts of Iraq, and provided $11 billion of savings in fuel costs for the government, with annual savings in excess of $3.3 billion going forward and major environmental benefits in cutting greenhouse gas emissions while transforming and energising the economic and social development of the entire region at the same time, said the statement.

In addition, the environmental benefits included a total of $169 million in carbon savings and lower environmental pollution due to the utilization of natural gas instead of liquid fuels for power generation.

The project partners had invested a total of $1,069 million under contracts signed with the Kurdistan government for the Khor Mor and Chmchemal blocks.

Major achievements of the project include installing a 180 km gas pipeline across a mountainous terrain that required the clearing of minefields; first gas production after only 16 months; drilling successfully to tertiary reservoir formations at depths of 2,300 metres, and importing and installing over 64,000 tonnes of equipment in over 3,500 truck-loads, with pipe material supplied from China and Thailand, and the processing plant imported from the US.

During the project’s construction phase, work opportunities were provided for over 2,000 Iraqi workers from all ethnic groups and sects, supported by expatriate workers from over 20 nationalities. The companies have already achieved the target of 80 per cent local staff ratio in their operations as part of their nationalisation plan.

The companies corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme included providing school supplies, drinking water treatment, generators and fuel enabling 24-hour electricity for the local villages, mobile medical units, and youth sports facilities. - TradeArabia News Service